Americans are flooding back to concerts — and that is sweet music to Live Nation, the concert promoter and owner of Ticketmaster.

Concert ticket sales grew by 6 million units in 2013, swelling revenue in that unit by 17 percent, to $4.5 billion, the company said.

Country music saw the biggest increase in ticket sales at Live Nation, with an added 2.3 million tickets being sold during the year, bringing the number of country-music tickets sold to 7 million.

The Liberty Media-backed firm hosted tours by Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake in the fourth quarter and is currently reaping the rewards of Miley Cyrus’ risqué tour.

CEO Michael Rapino told analysts Monday that better data collection has helped the company target its consumer marketing.
The firm has a database of 250 million fan preferences. The company, which bills itself as one of the biggest e-commerce firms in the US, now sells 14 percent of its tickets via mobile.

“We believe it’s been an unsophisticated industry that has relied on print and radio,” Rapino told analysts. “In LA they don’t tend to be sharp enough to reach the real fan. We’ve gone from zero to 40-to-50 percent of [the total marketing budget] used toward direct marketing, social media.”

Overall, the company reported its operating loss for the fourth quarter fell to $51 million, from $126.3 million a year earlier.